Teleconference systems, or simply “conference call systems,” bring multiple parties together from remote locations. Ideally, teleconference systems allow participants to communicate with each other as if they were seated in the same room. A teleconference system includes at least two stations (e.g., mobile telephone, landline telephone) set up in remote rooms or locations interconnected by a transmission system, such as a global network or a telephone system.
Participants at each of the stations communicate with each other through audio equipment. Audio equipment for each station typically includes one or more microphones, speakers, and the like.
People are busier than ever today and oftentimes do not have time to attend the entire conference call. Due to lack of time, people may only be interested in attending a portion of the conference call when a particular topic is discussed or when a particular speaker is speaking. However, there is currently no means for alerting a participant when a topic of interest is being discussed or when a speaker of interest is speaking.